Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman - Partnering With The City To Build More Affordable Housing

Cracking Down On Bad Guys, Using Resources For Good

The Attorney General stood with Bill de Blasio to announce that $10 million will be used to build new affordable housing units in New York City. The money comes from the office’s investigations into bad landlords who skirted tax laws, violated tenant rights and failed to provide rent stabilized leases.

As the Attorney General said: catching bad guys is good, but solving problems to help good people is better. 

  

Ensuring Equal Educational Access For Immigrant Children

The Attorney General penned an op-ed in Education Week about how the promise of equal access to education is being broken for many immigrant children, and the measures his office has taken to ensure equal access to a quality education for all students. Read the full op-ed here.

No Tolerance For Discriminatory Advertisements 

After a local healthcare staffing agency placed an advertisement in a local paper requesting a female “laid back nurse, no Haitians,” the Attorney General launched an investigation to determine whether discriminatory hiring practices were in place at the company. This week, the Attorney General reached an agreement with Interim HealthCare resolving the investigation, which includes a $100,000 penalty and further reforms. 

  

Marking National Consumer Protection Week

This week was National Consumer Protection Week, and the Attorney General offered a series of tips to keep New Yorkers safe from fraudsters. Learn about the most common consumer frauds and recent phone scams reported to the office. If you receive a call like this from a government agency warning you about an arrest, report it to the Attorney General’s office—it’s a scam!

Another Victory In The Fight Against Designer Drugs

The online designer drug company “Surrealistic Sensations,” can no longer sell designer drugs after the Attorney General won a permanent injunction in court. The decision follows an initial lawsuit against Surrealistic Sensations and a separate head shop back in October, and continues the Attorney General’s success in removing illegal and dangerous designer drugs from stores across New York. 

Have a question, comment, or complaint? Click here. You can also learn more about the various initiatives of the Attorney General's office by visiting our website atag.ny.gov. 

100 PERCENT SATURDAY MARCH 12, 2016

100 PERCENT

By Robert Press

78th Assembly Race

   Before I get into the 78th A.D. race, it seems that there is equal drama in the race to succeed Charlie Rangel as in the Republican Presidential Primary. There is a little man whom we shall call Mr. Rube who is on the payroll of a congressional candidate in much the same spot at Florida Senator Rubio. Mr. Rube is attacking both front runners in this congressional race, but then again he is getting paid for it. I wonder if the candidate paying Mr. Rube has spoken to another candidate in this congressional race who paid Mr. Rube in a past congressional race? 

   On to the 78th Assembly Race and this little man comers up again. It seems that people have told me that this little man can dish it out on facebook, but dare come back to him and reply to one of his rants he will delete your reply as if it was never written. This man is of course Anthony Rivieccio who is currently no longer the top dog with Assemblyman Jose Rivera now that Rivera has other people he can trust. 

   Mr. Michael Benjamin of the Bronx Chronicle reported that Mr. Rivieccio was a candidate for the 36th State Senate District to which Mr. Rivieccio will not confirm or deny. That was what one of my facebook call outs to Mr. Rivieccio was, and my reply on his post was deleted. Well Mr. Rivieccio people know you to well, and while you may block me from your facebook page you can not block me from this blog and my facebook page. 

   Anthony Rivieccio is now trying to get back into favor with Assemblyman Rivera, and has put on his facebook page that Mr. Ricky Martinez is going to run for the 78th assembly seat when in fact that is false. Being the Vice-Chair of the Committee of 100 Democrats, I can say that The Committee of 100 Democrats and Mr. Ricky Martinez will be supporting Ms. Ischia Bravo for the 78th Assembly seat against a person who has had a long career in politics, which many have said has been to long and he should retire. Over the course of the primary election Ms. Bravo will show the voters of the 78th A.D. why she is the best candidate, and why she cares for the district that the current assembly member has taken the voters for granted. I also expect to see the tricks and chicanery that goes on against those who challenge incumbents, and it would do the Bronx Democratic County organization best not to endorse a candidate in the 78th A.D. then to say we are endorsing all incumbents no matter who they are or how out of touch with their constituents they are. 

    I fully expect to see on his facebook page rants about me from Mr. Rivieccio, and Assemblyman Rivera the more Mr. Rivieccio does it the harder I will help Ms. Bravo defeat you. I know that you will not appear at debates as it runs in the Rivera family (sorry Joel), and I will expose any phoney forum that Mr. Rivieccio tries to arrange as some have said he tried in the past 11th City Council race. My advice to you Jose is listen to what you said in the last election about Mr. Anthony Rivieccio, or I might just have to print it. Go ahead Anthony ask him what he said about you, if he remembers I certainly do.

    Check this blog archive on the left for events that took place this past week and check out the many photos. I am sorry I had to waste this column on someone who is not worth it.

    If you have any political information that you want to share or have checked out, any comments about this column or would like to have an event listed or covered in this column or on this blog, you can e-mail us at 100percentbronxnews@gmail.com or call 718-644-4199 Mr. Robert Press.   

SENATOR JEFF KLEIN HOSTS 21ST ANNUAL BUNNY BREAKFAST

  State Senator Jeff Klein hosted his 21st Annual Bunny Breakfast this morning at the Villa Barone Manor in the Throggs Neck section of his Senate District.  Hundreds of Bronx children and families enjoyed a free continental breakfast, fun-filled magic show, build-a-bunny workshop, face painting, and children’s music.  The Easter Bunny made a special appearance and children had the opportunity to take photos with the Easter Bunny.  

Above - The Easter Bunny stopped in to take photos with the children.

Below - With it being so popular there were two face painters this year.  

Above and Below - Gabby Funtime the Magician goes through his magic act with some assistance from the children. Do you think the girl in the photo below knows what is going to happen?

Above - Senator Klein is holding Magician Gabby Funtime's live bunny rabbit, as Juan Tavarez from sponsor Health First is also in the photo.

Below - In this photo Senator Klein has given Magician Gabby Funtime his bunny rabbit back, and is joined by some of the happy children.

6th “Abrazo Garifuna in New York”

  Senator Rev. Rubén Díaz, in conjunction with  New York State Assemblymen Marcos Crespo, Luis Sepulveda, Michael Blake and newly elected City Council Member Rafael Salamanca, celebrated the 6th  “Abrazo Garifuna in New York.” held Friday night at Maestro's Caterers. Over 500 people attended this standing room only event, and the photos below will tell the rest of the story.

Above - There were photo ops with the elected officials before the event.

Below - Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. was on hand and almost everyone wanted to greet him, or have their photo taken with him.

Above - BP Diaz opened the event as the five Honorees came into the room with an elected official.

Below - Honoree Yasmin Ramos enters with Assemblyman Luis Sepulveda.

Above and Below - After showing off some dance moves Honoree Mirta Reyes and Assemblyman Michael Blake come to the front of the room.

Above - Honoree Barbara Neil Lopez enters with New City Councilman Rafael Salamanca.

Below - Honoree Sulma Arzu-Brown enters with Assemblyman Luis Sepulveda who stood in for his semi-twin brother Assemblyman Marcos Crespo who arrived afterwards. 

Above and Below - No it is not the same photo, but Mr. Felix Gamboa was the hit of the night when he sang the International Garifuna Anthem. 

Above - The five Honorees, Barbara Neil-Lopez, Mirta J. Reyes, Yasmin Ramos, Candido Nunez, and Sulma Arzu-Brown. 

Below - I was able to take my place as one of the members of 'TEAM DIAZ'  as I stood in for Assemblyman Marcos Crespo. 

Bronx DA Visits 50th Precinct Council

  Thursday night was the 50th Precinct Council meeting. It was a pack standing room only crowd, not because of issues with the commanding officer, but to see Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark who after a busy day was the scheduled guest. Earlier in the day DA Clark was involved in taking down a large illegal operation, and still found the time to attend the 50th Precinct Council meeting. After she spoke of changes that she intends to do in the way cases are handled, she then took questions from almost everyone in the room. Currently there may be several Assistant DA's who may work on the different aspects of a case from meeting the complainant to prosecuting the case in court, called horizontal justice. DA Clark want to change the process to a vertical system where one DA will handle a case from beginning all the way to the court hearing. 

Above - 50th Precinct Commanding Officer Captain O'Toole introduces Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark to the large audience at the precinct Council meeting. 

Below - 50th Precinct Council President Paulette Schlomo is seated as Bronx DA Darcel Clark first speaks about her new job, and then answered questions from the packed room.

Croton Facility Monitoring Committee Meeting Tuesday, March 22, 2016 - Agenda

Agenda

Croton Facility Monitoring Committee Meeting

Tuesday, March 22, 2016 – 7:00 PM

DEP Office – 3660 Jerome Avenue, Bronx NY 10467 - (718) 231-8470

I  Welcome, Open the Meeting                                      Dan Padernacht, Chair

II Adopt March CFMC Agenda                                    CFMC Representatives

III Consider, Adopt Previous Meeting                        CFMC Representatives

  Minutes: June 22, 2015 & January 21, 2016

IV Update on VCP Landscaping & Clubhouse   DDC & DPR Representatives

V Jerome Park Reservoir – Update from Task     Task Force Representatives      

Force on Public Access 

VI Croton Costs Report & Construction Update     Vincent Moorehead, DEP 

VII Old Business                                                           CFMC Representatives

VIII New Business                                                        CFMC Representatives

IX Set Next CFMC Meeting Date                                  CFMC Representatives

Rep. Engel: Following Iran Dam Hack We Must Account for Risks Posed by Cyberattacks

  Congressman Eliot L. Engel, the Ranking Member on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, issued the following statement in response to the Justice Department’s announcement that Iran is responsible for a cyber-attack on the Bowman Avenue Dam in Rye, New York:

“Yesterday’s report confirming that Iran successfully executed a cyberattack on a dam in Rye comes as no surprise. This attack is further proof that Iran cannot be trusted, and we will not tolerate these provocations on their part.

“We live in dangerous times, and cannot continue to underestimate or discount the threat posed by cyberattacks like these. A small dam in Rye might only be the tip of the iceberg. This incident could just as easily be about a nuclear facility sitting 25 miles outside New York City, or a compressed natural gas pipeline running a mere 150 feet alongside it. A cybercriminal or hostile foreign nation which hacked into the Bowman Avenue Dam could also hack into or seize control of – and perhaps even destroy – any piece of infrastructure connected to a computer.

“We are not as prepared to deal with cyber threats as we should be, and we need to make countering them a much higher priority before it’s too late. For months now I have led the call demanding that FERC – the federal agency which approved the Algonquin Incremental Market (AIM) pipeline project earlier this year – take these dangers into account and consult with experts before going ahead with their approval. Unfortunately, my calls fell on deaf ears, and FERC issued final approval of the project earlier this year. I urge Governor Cuomo in his planned safety assessment of the Algonquin AIM pipeline to focus on the potential threats cyber-terrorism pose to the project.

“The Department of Homeland Security needs to be involved in the decision-making process anytime a new piece of critical infrastructure is proposed. So I am drafting legislation that will give DHS a say in any approval process going forward. At this late hour, I hope it isn’t too late for Governor Cuomo’s independent safety assessment to convince FERC to retract its approval of the Algonquin AIM pipeline.”

Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz and Senator Gustavo Rivera Introduce Smoking Ban Legislation

   New York State Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz and State Senator Gustavo Rivera have introduced a bill today expanding legislation they passed in 2012 banning smoking within 100 feet of any school entrances or exits to include public libraries.

   The new bill seeks to expand the protections to the public health law created by chapter 449 of the laws of 2012 which prohibited smoking within 100 feet of any entrance or exit of public or private elementary, or secondary schools. This bill would expand these protections by placing the same ban on all private and public libraries – protecting library patrons from the dangers of secondhand smoke.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, secondhand smoke exposure causes acute lower respiratory infections such as bronchitis and pneumonia in young children, who visit and benefit greatly from libraries. Along with respiratory symptoms such as coughing, wheezing, and breathlessness among school-aged children and young adults, even brief secondhand smoke exposure can damage cells in ways that set the cancer process in motion. This legislation will add to the growing number of places young children, seniors, and all New Yorkers can enjoy without being exposed to second hand smoke.

“Several years ago New York State successfully banned smoking indoors to protect all New Yorkers from the harmful side effects of secondhand smoke, and four years ago Senator Rivera and I expanded that ban to the entrances and exits of our schools, said Assemblyman Dinowitz. “Today, I am proud to extend that smoke-free protection even further to include the entrances and exits of our state’s libraries. New Yorkers have the right to go to their local public library without being exposed to secondhand smoke – which despite being secondhand, is still known have detrimental medical side effects to those exposed. This bill is especially important when you consider the number of school age children and seniors who patronize public libraries – they deserve a smoke free and healthy environment to enjoy our state’s great library systems, and I am thrilled to work with my colleague Senator Rivera again to make New York a healthier place.”

“Extending smoke free areas to our state libraries is a common sense proposal that will protect our community from the unquestionable dangers of second hand smoking. It will also positively enhance the learning experience for the thousands of children, youths, adults and seniors that visit our libraries each year", said State Senator Gustavo Rivera. “I am fully committed to working with Assemblymember Dinowitz to ensure we pass this piece of legislation in the Senate and Assembly, which will help safeguard our communities’ public health.”

"The New York Public Library thanks Assemblyman Dinowitz and Senator Rivera for their strong support of libraries, and for extending legislation that will keep our branches cleaner and our visitors safer and healthier," said George Mihaltses, the New York Public Library's Vice President of Government and Community Affairs.

“Tobacco remains the #1 cause of preventable death for New Yorkers, and secondhand smoke can be just as dangerous,” said Guillermo Flores, Jr. of NYC Smoke-Free. “Even brief exposure to secondhand smoke can cause adverse health effects in both adults and children. There is no safe level. Curbing exposure to secondhand smoke in outdoor areas is a measure of comprehensive tobacco control which prevents kids from starting to smoke and helps adult smokers quit.”